Introduction
When the pandemic hit, the biggest concern for parents, governments, and educational institutions was – how to continue the academics of students and overall holistic development, inside the four walls of their homes. The answer was Elearning platforms! Attending classes, lectures, and tests at home all via the internet has become a reality much sooner than anticipated, thanks to the pandemic.
E-learning solutions are expected to be a 325 billion-dollar industry by 2025. This means that the learning and development industry is still in its infancy and is only bound to grow in the coming years. More and more businesses are hence investing or looking to fund learning platforms and Massive Open Online Learning courses (MOOC). The credibility of e-Learning platforms is rising along with the demand for the same. If you are an enterprise looking to develop a similar platform for learning and development, this blog might be an answer to all your queries. Read on to learn all about building Custom E-learning platforms by education for the best learning experiences.
What is an – E-learning platform?
E-learning stands for electronic learning. As the name suggests, learning refers to training, learning, and gaining knowledge via digital means. It is different from traditional learning models wherein the student has to sit in physical classes and gain knowledge. Custom E-learning solutions have transformed the way students learn. Unlike conventional learning models, digital learning eliminates the need for physical travel and educational infrastructure; has better, more interactive learning models, and is accessible to everyone.
Elearning started with basic educational websites with Wikipedia being the predecessor of all eLearning models. Slowly through time, learning models have evolved into websites, mobile applications, software applications, and more. These models are extremely effective with interactive learning methods such as online doubt resolution, digital dictionaries, communities of learners, and video tutorials amongst other convenient learning tools. There are many benefits of an e-learning platform. Below are a few of them:
Advantages of e-learning platforms
The growing popularity of e-learning platforms can be attributed to the variety of benefits it brings to the table. These are:
Flexibility
Sharing and imparting knowledge via eLearning platforms guarantees more accessibility and to the student. It gives its users flexibility to gain and impart knowledge irrespective of time and place. Students who do not have access to educational institutions can access these platforms digitally and continue their academic development at a fraction of the cost.
Better Retention
In a survey, it was observed that students who depended on E-learning platforms completely for their schooling and academics had elevated retention power compared to students availing traditional schooling techniques. There was a difference of almost 25-60% in retaining the abilities of the surveyed students.
Inexpensive access to knowledge
With the cost of education being no exception to inflation, parents and students worldwide are switching to e-learning for cost efficiency. Earlier additional coaching and remedial classes would often burn a hole in parents’ pockets. E-learning provides courses, tutorials, and guidance at a fraction of the cost thus reducing the overall cost of education which is a boon for the underprivileged population.
Time Efficiency
E-learning is time efficient because learners can accommodate their learning around their schedules. The platforms are well equipped to store courses and videos that can be accessed at will and when users have time.
Environmental friendly
E-learning platforms are more environmentally friendly compared to traditional schooling systems as students need not travel to public spaces, purchase stationery worth thousands, and use facilities that have larger carbon footprint. Although it is not completely carbon neutral, learners will still have to use electricity and print paper/notes.
Steps to build a successful e-Learning platform
The process of building a successful e-learning platform is simple. It comprises of six stages given below:
Come up with a unique idea
Businesses need to have a unique idea for developing e-learning platforms. As more and more businesses come up with learning platforms, one needs to make sure that the idea is different from what is already there in the market.
Understand your niche
The next step is to understand one’s business niche, in this case, it is education. Understanding what course to offer, the demographic of learners, age, gender, educational requirements, primary objectives, and learning preferences are a few metrics that should be researched thoroughly beforehand.
Pick a Monetising Model
Monetizing models refer to the way the platform will make money or generate revenue. Many different models generate value for e-learning platforms. Some of them are:
- Paid certificates from platforms
- Subscription-based monetizing model i.e., users avail the contents of the educational platform at nominal yearly or a monthly fee
- Affiliate model – Further links to courses, resources, and books can further bring in revenue
- corporate collaboration – This refers to collaborating and advertising with corporates and using the platform to share educational material.
- paid courses – The student can avail of the course at a small fee which is divided between the instructor and the platform.
Must-have features of E-Learning platforms
These days an eLearning Platform has a lot of features, some of which are crucial for the platform’s success. That being said, here are a few features that every educational platform must possess. This amounts to an interactive platform that is easily accessible by all the concerned users: students, teachers, owners, and other stakeholders.
Student and Teacher’s profile
- Search, filter, and exam options: A search engine to handle basic searches for courses and category runs. The interface also should have filters for sorting out preferences, subjects, expertise levels, etc.
- A recommendation panel and options for additional remedial courses based on schedule and courses for students
- For a teacher’s profile, the platform should have a content updation and edit corner.
- A dashboard for students and teachers is also a must in an ed-tech platform. A dashboard is a convenient tool for keeping track of the courses they have uploaded, the
number of people participating, etc.
Administrative profile features
The administrative dashboard comprises options to perform the following functions:
- add, edit details, remove users
- Course updation
- Analytics and reports corners
- Notifications page
- Log off all enrolled educators and learners
Apart from these, the Admin dashboard can also have options like push and email notifications to engage with subscribers.
Choose the development approach
When building an e-learning platform, one can choose from either of the two options: build it from scratch or white label a ready-made solution of a Learning Management system available in the markets.
Custom e-Learning platform development
For enterprises looking to cater to a specific crowd let’s say to students from a particular field or preparing for a specific management exam. Any enterprise software development company can help such enterprises build Learning Management systems targeted at that course or exam , from scratch, using different development techniques. This approach is ideal for enterprises looking to introduce a unique Elearning platform with a niche functionality to their customers.
Ready-made products
The market offers many open-source software like Moodle, Joomla, and Canvas. These tools provide basic student management features and many free plugins but limit businesses when it comes to the creativity and uniqueness of the e-learning platform that is designed.
Engage good educators
An e-learning platform is nothing without good content and good educators. It is important to employ the best content-creating team and best educators as it is to design it for learners. The educational content when delivered by world-class educators allows learners to learn and retain better, and build brand loyalty in the long run.
Case Studies of Successful E-learning Platforms
Byju’s AL/ML-based eLearning application
Recently scaled-up Byju’s application is one eLearning platform to watch out for. Upgraded with third-party integrations of LeadSquared and FreshDesk for lead handling and communication, Byju is one of the Top 10 most popular e-learning applications on the Google Play Store.
Recently, with the help of customized solutions provided by OpenXcell, BYJU has further streamlined its operations which has improved its customer interactions by leaps and bounds.
Features include:
- Automation to scale business
- Role-based Dashboard
- Central Repository
- Logistic Workflow alignment
- Integration with third-party applications
Vedantu
Another very popular eLearning platform, Vedantu provides futuristic learning experiences to its community of 500 million+ students to date. With students accessing the platform from as many as 50 countries, the application is a crowd favorite amongst learners. With constant upscaling and improvement, the company has observed that by optimizing its learning management operations by 30%, it has witnessed a hike of 36%.
Udemy
Udemy.com is an online marketplace for learners & teachers and a place where you can acquire new skills by enrolling in in-depth lessons from over 80,000 courses. Its interactive classes, easy doubt-clearing sessions, and convenient dashboard contribute to its large number of subscribers.
The main advantages of Udemy are :
- Courses for individuals and corporations
- Vast selection of personalized courses
- Skills-focused educational material
- Lifetime access to the paid courses
Conclusion
Learning never stops. Elearning software solutions further guarantees this notion. Irrespective of time, place, and situation, Edutech platforms allow an exchange of knowledge, bringing together learners and educators globally, all via the Internet. Needless to say, the demand for such platforms is expected to skyrocket in the coming years. Many education software development companies can help achieve this. OpenXcell is a leading education software development company that has successfully built Learning management systems for businesses of all sizes. Its roster of 700+ happy clients vouch for the company’s robust software solutions and their timely deliverance.